U. of C. to bid hard for Obama library site

President forms foundation to consider applicants

University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer is being introduced before speaking to the City Club of Chicago at Maggiano's on April 2, 2012. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)

As the effort to preserve the legacy of President Barack Obama through a presidential library officially gets underway, the University of Chicago announced an aggressive push for an off-campus site on the South Side.

U. of C. President Robert Zimmer said Friday that the Hyde Park university will seek to land the library in an effort to spur economic growth in nearby neighborhoods.

"I strongly believe the Obama Presidential Library would be ideal for one of our neighboring communities on the South Side of Chicago," Zimmer said in a statement. "A presidential library would mark a watershed moment for the South Side, catalyzing significant and sustained economic opportunity in an area poised to make the most of such promise."

The university has pulled together a diverse advisory committee to work on the bid. It's made up of prominent business people and community leaders from the Chicago Urban League, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the DuSable Museum of African American History, among others.

The U. of C. went public with its intentions just hours after an announcement that the Barack H. Obama Foundation had been formed to oversee the development of the presidential library.

For leadership of the foundation, Obama once again turned to members of his trusted inner circle, a small group of supporters who worked to send him to the White House in 2008 and to keep him there in 2012.

Chicago businessman Marty Nesbitt, a close friend of the president and his former campaign treasurer, said Friday that Obama asked him to serve on the foundation. Other board members are Julianna Smoot, who was deputy campaign manager for Obama's 2012 run, and Kevin Poorman, who heads a Chicago investment firm founded by Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker.

Nesbitt said the foundation is charged with developing a library that reflects the president's values and priorities. He said it will focus on issues like economic opportunity and on promoting peace, justice and dignity around the world.

Economic development will be a cornerstone of the project, he said.

"The foundation envisions a facility that, through mission and initiatives, physical and virtual presence, can become an anchor for economic development and cultivate a strong relationship with the library's surrounding communities," Nesbitt said.

The foundation, he said, has developed an application process that encourages community engagement and allows for a diverse slate of ideas for the library.

University of Illinois at Chicago Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares said her Near West Side institution remains interested in hosting the library. The university has not released details about how it will go forward.

"Our aim is to afford the Obama Presidential Library all the advantages of this public university and our neighborhood in the heart of this great American city," Allen-Meares said in a statement.

Chicago State University on the Far South Side also has expressed interest. Additional competition is expected from Columbia University in New York, where Obama pursued his undergraduate degree, and the University of Hawaii in Obama's native state.

For more than a year, Chicago communities including Washington Park, Bronzeville, southeast Chicago and Woodlawn have been jockeying to become the library's home. Mayor Rahm Emanuel said last week that he wanted a single unified bid from the city.

On Friday, Emanuel reiterated the city's commitment to securing the library.

"Though we're excited to welcome the President home, we are not resting on our laurels and will put forward a competitive proposal so that his choice is an easy one," Emanuel said in a statement.

The mayor's call for a single bid, however, appeared to conflict with the foundation's plan to seek a diverse group of applicants. The foundation will solicit bids and make recommendations to the president and first lady, and the Obamas will have the final say in choosing the site.

Nesbitt said the process will begin as early as this week, when interested bidders will be asked to submit their qualifications for hosting the library. The field will then be narrowed and the remaining bidders invited to submit formal proposals.

Among the criteria for the site will be the bidder's ability to raise money for the library's construction and maintenance. Some experts said the library could cost up to $500 million.

The Obamas will not be involved in fundraising while the president is still in office, Nesbitt said.

He said the foundation expects to make its selection early next year.

"We will have an open and transparent process," Nesbitt said. "The hope is that every bidder participating should feel like they have a fair and level playing field."